Fugaku let out a heavy sigh. He had already guessed that today's conversation wouldn't go smoothly, but he hadn't expected to receive quite this much information.
Would his most treasured eldest son really do such a thing in the future?
Would he truly go so far— for the sake of protecting Konoha, for the sake of living out his convictions— as to slaughter the entire Uchiha clan?
Fugaku felt lost.
As Clan Head, once he learned that Uchiha Itachi was destined to carry out such deeds, the "correct" action should have been to put justice before family and eliminate Itachi on the spot.
"But … "
Fugaku murmured, "What would be the point? Perhaps the future Chizumi saw is simply the Uchiha clan's fate. And fate…cannot be broken."
All the way home he walked in silence, still reeling from the shock.
"Fugaku, didn't Itachi come back with you? You and Chizumi didn't get into a fight, did you?"
Uchiha Mikoto stepped forward, worried.
Shaking off his daze, Fugaku shook his head. "Itachi probably went straight to the Anbu—dawn's already broken. If Chizumi and I had come to blows, you'd be looking at an injured husband right now."
Mikoto finally let out a breath of relief.
She knew her husband and son had gone to see Uchiha Chizumi, and during that single hour she had been on edge, afraid something terrible might happen.
"Did something happen?" Mikoto keenly noticed the change in Fugaku's expression and tone.
"…Nothing."
Fugaku chose to conceal the truth—for telling a mother that "your eldest son is very likely to kill you with his own hands in a year" was far too cruel.
…
"Me‑ow! Everyone, I have a mission for you."
On the roof of Uchiha Chizumi's house, the ninja‑cat Jūjirō stood upright like a person, paws clasped behind his back, pacing as he spoke.
Before him were more than twenty ninja‑cats—his offspring and grand‑kittens from years of "branching out."
"The mission is … spread word of what happened in Chizumi-sama's house today. I'll fill you in on the details in a moment."
In his odd accent Jūjirō declared, "Our goal is to expose Uchiha Itachi's future evil to the world—and to expose Uchiha Fugaku's indulgence as well!"
A white ninja‑cat raised a paw, meowing loudly.
"Speak language!" Jūjirō barked.
"Is this Chizumi-sama's will?" the white cat asked timidly.
"A‑hem! Chizumi-sama tacitly approves," Jūjirō said, puffing up his fur in anger. "I won't deny I've mixed in a little personal feline feeling—after all, I just can't stand that Uchiha Itachi, me‑ow! What right does he have to criticize Chizumi-sama's Absolute Justice?
"And that Fugaku—honestly, I've never seen such a spineless clan head! Chizumi-sama was right all along: that so‑called 'Wicked-Eyes Fugaku' is really 'Scared-Eye Fugaku.' Like father, like son, me‑ow!"
But then Jūjirō noticed all the cats looking at him strangely, signaling with their eyes. An instant later he felt himself lifted by the scruff.
He froze, not daring to struggle.
"C-Chizumi-sama?"
Jūjirō thought the sky was falling; he trembled so hard even his whiskers shook. "I‑I …"
"Don't embellish," Uchiha Chizumi said coolly, setting him down. "Just stick to the facts."
Jūjirō blinked, then recovered. "Me‑ow! Understood, Chizumi-sama! Leave everything to me!"
After so many years with Chizumi, one word was all it took for him to grasp his intent.
…
"Hokage‑sama."
Just as Fugaku had guessed, Uchiha Itachi reported straight to the Anbu. Wearing the black‑ops uniform, he now stood before Sarutobi Hiruzen.
"Itachi, is that you …"
Even with the mask, Hiruzen recognized the boy by figure and voice. Exhaling, he pushed aside the gloom lingering from his own son's death.
"What brings you here?"
"Before dawn I met with Uchiha Chizumi," Itachi replied.
Hiruzen paused. "I recall there was some misunderstanding between you two?"
He looked Itachi over—no wounds, no sign of a fight.
"The 'misunderstanding' is gone," Itachi said quietly, "but the conflict has probably deepened."
Hiruzen frowned. "Explain."
Itachi spoke without hesitation: "Hokage‑sama, Uchiha Chizumi has very likely awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan—the most powerful, legendary form of our clan's eye. With it he can see a person's future evil. He…saw the future evil in me."
Hiruzen's pupils contracted.
"In the future," Itachi continued, "to protect Konoha, I will willingly shoulder every curse and hatred, and personally kill almost every member of the Uchiha clan, so that a strife‑torn Konoha may know peace again."
Hiruzen was stunned; there was too much to take in at once.
Piecing it together—Chizumi's Mangekyō had seen Itachi's future evil, which explained their tense relationship. Itachi's "evil" amounted to slaughtering his own clan for the village's peace. And the only premise for such an extreme act, Hiruzen realized, was one thing:
The Uchiha must be planning a coup.
The weight of it made Hiruzen draw a sharp breath. His old face grew solemn. "Itachi…do you understand what your words imply? Can you be certain they're true?"
"Yes, Hokage‑sama. These are Uchiha Chizumi's words. Though our stances differ, I trust what he says."
Silence.
"A dojutsu that sees future evil…" Hiruzen muttered. "I see…"
He had known Chizumi's eyes could see past sins, but not future ones. Frightening, yet not directly weaponizable.
And he believed Itachi—and, indirectly, Chizumi.
If the Uchiha were indeed annihilated for a coup, who would give that cold‑blooded order? Would it be…him?
He gazed at the twelve‑year‑old before him, face complicated.
"Itachi—"
"Hokage‑sama," Itachi answered.
"You've done enough. Don't repeat what you just told me to anyone. Let's pretend none of this happened, that you never heard any of Chizumi's words."
Itachi looked up, puzzled.
Hiruzen rose and placed a gentle hand on the youth's shoulder. "I don't want that future to come true. You're a rare young sprout of Konoha; I don't want you mired in such pain.
"If your clansmen learned of this, they'd surely ostracize you—your life could even be in danger. So let's treat it as if nothing ever happened."
After a pause he added with emotion, "You truly are the child I respect most. I'm proud of you. But…let's do everything we can to avoid that outcome."
"…Yes, Hokage‑sama."
Itachi bowed deeply. Certain ideas in his heart grew ever more resolute because of Hiruzen's words.